Olivier Rousteing, the long-time creative director of Balmain, has been consistently effusive about his African heritage, especially in the fairly recent light of a better understanding of his paternal and maternal roots.
In his latest feat, Rousteing created the resplendent, head-turning dress in which American supermodel Gigi Hadid graced the Vogue World runway at Paris Fashion Week on Sunday. Celebrating French fashion over the past century, paired with sports like cycling and gymnastics, Vogue World brought out hundreds of celebrities in glam fits related to its theme. For Hadid, Rousteing says he made a dress for “the new goddess of the fashion world.”
The dress combines a billowing blue skirt and a draped, armor-like gold bustier. The former recalls one of the colors of the French flag and a historically vital color to the Balmain fashion house, while the latter is inspired by Marianne de France, a symbol of strength from the French revolution. Rousteing also admits that being African is integral to his French nationality and, by extension, his creative designs.
Photo by Marc Piasecki/Getty Images for Vogue.
Gigi Hadid walks the runway during Vogue World: Paris at Place Vendome on June 23, 2024 in Paris, France.
“It feels really quite important to me because of my mix of cultures,” he told Vogue. “I am from Bordeaux in the South of France, but I was adopted, with origins in Ethiopia and Somalia. I was born and raised in France, but I have these African roots and it’s an honor to show that side of French culture.”
On this year’s MET Gala red carpet, Rousteing designed the gorgeous nude gown that helped garner admiration for South African singer and Grammy winner Tyla. Last year, he debuted a resort collection entirely dedicated to the beauty and culture of Egypt, a curiosity he’d been nurturing since a young man who knew of his Africanness but had yet to find out his specific roots.
Now with a fuller grasp of his identity, being African is intrinsic to everything Rousteing does and will continue to do.
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